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Sunday, 5 February 2012

The Last supper and Maxists

Of late the CPM has taken a liking to Jesus describing him as the first revolutionary and communist. In addition they are staging an exhibition now in Kottyam in which the crucified Jesus takes centre-stage. Things have now come to head with a poster coming up in Kannur or so with a picture on the lines of the Last Supper Painting by Leonardo Da Vinci. In this poster, Obama takes the position of Jesus with Sonia, Modi and others taking the positions of the apostles. It is obviously a CPM ploy though they have denied any implication. This picture has since been taken down. But Catholic and Christian sentiments are beginning to get hurt and hurt is spreading starting with the Bishop of Trivandrum

The last supper painting by Da Vinci shows Jesus and the Disciples as sitting on chairs behind a table. This has nothing to do with reality as people sit around a table and not on one side as in the painting by D Vinci. What is more, even to this day people in the middle east squat on the floor for meals. Obviously Da Vinci's representation was more in accordance with his time and environment than in accordance with reality.

Obviously Da Vinci's painting has nothing to do with reality and yet people are ready to get their sentiments hurt based on this picture from someone's imagination.

The Church claims that the last supper is the most important event in Jesus' life after the resurrection since it is the commemoration of Jesus' sacrifice to atone for Adam's sin. But strangely enough, John who claims that he is Jesus' favorite disciple does not make a mention of the last supper in the gospel written by him. Instead he describes the washing of the feet. And in a clever marketing gimmick the church has combined the two events - the last supper and the feet washing - into a megaevent to strip the faithful of their cash. What is even more surprising is that the faithful, even the very educated, have not bothered to read the gospel though they are quick to get their sentiments hurt.